Dumbledore's Reaction
by gahhMinerva
Summary: Sequel to "Detention!" Dumbledore reacts to Minerva's little prank.


Disclaimer: I don't anything from the Harry Potter series, silly. _J.K. Rowling_ does. I'm only borrowing her wonderful ideas & characters. 

Summary: Albus Dumbledore reacts to what Professor McGonagall did to him during her detention. It's like the sequel to Detention, my other story.

A/N: If you didn't read my other story, Detention, you should probably do that before reading this one. It'll just make more sense to you that way. And, I meant to get this out a whole lot sooner. Like in August. But then I had to get my computer fixed. So uh.. I hope you enjoy this.

* * *

Albus Dumbledore watched as Professor McGonagall left his office. Once she left, he picked up the parchment where she wrote her lines observed it. Her handwriting was very neat and consistent; nearly every line was practically identical. He was glad that he charmed his bottle of purple ink to never empty because 204 lines of "I will no longer skip meals to do excess work" surely would have drained it considerably. After closing the ink bottle and putting it away in his desk drawer, he stood up. 

"Good night, Fawkes," Dumbledore said to his phoenix, who seemed to be amused. "What is so funny, hmm?" he asked playfully. He chuckled to himself and again bade good night to his phoenix.

Professor Dumbledore entered his dark bedroom and, using his wand, lit a single torch on the wall. The light from the flame enabled him to find his moon-patterned sleep clothes, which were folded and laying on his bed. He quickly changed into them and extinguished the single flame that lit the room. He placed his wand on his bedside table and, finally, climbed into bed and drifted into a peaceful night's sleep.

Morning came, and Dumbledore awoke to the sun shining on his face. It was 6:45 A.M., and he was very well-rested. He greeted the new day with a cheerful grin and began to get ready for breakfast. He sang the school song of Hogwarts while taking his morning shower, and he was in a positively splendid mood while searching through his closet for a pair of robes. He selected his starry purple robes and stepped over to the mirror to see how they looked. Then he cried out in a mixture of shock and fright.

"My hair is blue!" Albus gasped, losing his calm. He touched it to make sure it was really his hair.

_When did this happen?_ Dumbledore wondered. _Is there hairdye in my shampoo?_

Then he suddenly smiled and shook his head. _I'll just change it back_, he decided and went to fetch his wand. He snatched it off the bedside table and returned to the mirror. He waved his wand around his head and murmured a spell. Nothing happened. He tried a different spell, but still, nothing happened. He tried every color-changing spell he knew, but his hair remained a deep blue.

_Somebody has good hair-changing skills_, Professor Dumbledore thought frustratedly, _but who?_

He decided to change into a pair of light blue robes because he didn't like the way his -- temporary, he hoped -- hair color looked with the violet ones. As he buttoned up his robes, he thought of many questions. How long had it been like this? How long _will_ it be like this? Who did it? Why won't it restore to normal? The last person who saw him was Minerva McGonagall.

"Could Minerva have done this?" Dumbledore asked aloud. Then he thought, _Of course she didn't, though. I watched her the entire length of time she served her detention. She was very cooperative, and she did her lines like I asked._ He frowned slightly in bewilderment. _At least, I think I did._ He sighed. _Maybe Minerva will know something._

He exited his bedroom and stopped when Fawkes chirped at him. Whirling around, he smiled at the bird.

"Good morning, Fawkes," he said. Then he remembered the expression Fawkes seemed to have the previous night after Professor McGonagall left. "Was my hair blue last night?" he asked his pet. Fawkes just stared at him.

Professor Dumbledore said goodbye to his phoenix and left his office. He descended the spiral staircase and swept past the stone gargoyle that guarded the entrance to his office. He headed down to Professor McGonagall's office, where he hoped she would be, so he could figure out how his current hair situation had arisen. He was glad it was early because he wasn't sure how any passing students would react to his blue hair.

_If my hair was blue last night, surely I would have noticed_, Albus thought. _My_ beard _is blue, and I'd only have to look down to see it._ He felt puzzled. _Maybe I was too tired to realize any color change. And this morning -- why didn't I during my shower? Was my hair blue before I washed it? Perhaps I should have paid more attention, instead of, well, singing the school song._ He mentally scolded himself for not being more observant.

Finally he reached the door to Professor McGonagall's office. He knocked on it and waited for a response. A few moments later, the door opened, and Professor McGonagall was standing in the doorway.

"Al-Albus! What a... pleasant surprise!" she managed to say without laughing.

"Good morning, Minerva," Dumbledore said pleasantly. "May I come in?"

"Of -- of course," she replied and allowed him to enter. She shut the door and quickly moved over to her desk, where her diary lay wide open. She shut it hastily, remember that she had recorded the events of last night in great detail. "What can I do for you?" she asked, trying to act normally.

"Well, first I must ask you a question," Professor Dumbledore began. "Do you notice anything... different about my appearance today?" His eyes twinkled, knowing that his blue hair was probably screaming to be noticed.

"I see you've dyed your hair," Minerva responded, trying to look mildly surprised.

"It's _blue!_" Albus exclaimed, pointing to his head and tugging on his beard.

"I can see that, Albus," Professor McGonagall said. "I understand that blue is one of your favorite colors, Albus, dear, but you didn't have to --"

"--dye it blue?" he finished for her. "I didn't! I was putting on my robes this morning, and when I looked in the mirror, I noticed that my hair was blue!"

"That's very interesting, Albus," Minerva commented. _He just noticed_ this morning? _Wow! I thought he would have realized sooner!_ she thought.

"Do you know how it _got_ like this, Minerva?" he asked, trying to figure out the mystery. Minerva didn't want to lie to Albus, but she also didn't want to tell him she was the prankster, especially not before anyone else even got to _see_ him. She hurriedly tried to give a good response.

"Umm, well- I- I imagine someone must have done a- a color-changing spell," Professor McGonagall stammered. "Or maybe it was Peeves. You know, he might have put blue dye in your shampoo or something. Like he did to Snape last year -- remember? His hair was pink for a week! Do you remember that, Albus? Do you?" she prattled nervously, attempting to bring his attention away from herself.

"Yes, I do remember that, Minerva, but do you honestly think Peeves would repeat such a prank so soon?" he asked.

"Maybe he's running out of ideas," she suggested quickly. "It was funny though, wasn't it, Albus?" She shoved her hands in her pockets to hide their uncontrollable twitching, but Professor Dumbledore noticed before she managed to put them out of sight.

"Are you all right, Minerva?" he asked, eyeing her curiously. "You're hands are quivering unnaturally."

"Oh, um- I- I'm just... cold," she lied. She pulled her robes around more tightly, as if to prove that statement. Her thoughts were racing. _He's on to me! He's going to give me another detention; I know it! And take away my red ink! What was I thinking last night? I'm blushing, too, aren't I? Oh, my guilt is obvious!_

Albus noticed that she was wearing rather thick robes, and a fire was roaring in the fireplace. He thought it was quite warm in her office. "Are you ill, dear? It is rather warm in here, and you're talking of being cold," he said gently. _I knew she shouldn't be working so hard!_

"Of course I'm okay, Albus," Professor McGonagall said and put on a goofy grin, trying to reassure him that she was fine. _That was a good response. I would've said that under normal circumstances, too_, she thought.

"Are you sure, Minerva? Your face is all flushed," Dumbledore said. He approached her and placed his hand on her forehead. His twinkling blue eyes were filled with concern.

"Albus, I'm _fine_," Minerva insisted, and it was almost true. Other than worrying about being found out, she was perfectly okay. Then she quickly changed the subject. "Look, we'd better get down to breakfast. It's nearly eight o' clock, and, as you very well know, that's when breakfast begins."

Albus was still inspecting her questioningly but only said, "You're right, of course. We should head down there now."

After a polite offer from Professor Dumbledore, the two walked down to the Great Hall arm in arm. The passing students looked at Dumbledore with amused and questioning expressions. A few students even burst out into hysterical laughter, and they ran past before Professor McGonagall would even get a chance to reprimand them.

"Do I look _that_ funny, Minerva?" Albus asked, with what appeared to be a smidgen of hurt in his sparkling blue eyes. Minerva felt a pang of guilt. She didn't want to _hurt_ Albus. She just wanted him to get a little embarrassing spotlight.

"Of course not, Albus," she whispered, observing the movement of her feet as she walked. _You always look so handsome_, she added in her thoughts.

Moments later, they encountered Peeves. He looked rather surprised at the sighting of Professor Dumbledore's blue hair. Usually he was the master of pranking, but someone had indeed outdone him, by daring to prank the Headmaster.

"Morning, Professorhead and his lady," Peeves greeted as politely as he could. Minerva turned slightly pink at being called Dumbledore's lady. Peeves zoomed around them and continued, "Who dyed your hair, Your Headship?" The poltergeist wanted to find out who the prankster was.

Albus shrugged slowly and sighed. "I don't know, Peeves." Minerva shifted uncomfortably on her feet.

Peeves tugged on his mustache thoughtfully. "Good luck finding out, Dumbly!" he exclaimed and swooped over their heads. Just as the two continued walking, Minerva felt a chill creep over her.

"Was it you, Deputydetention?" Peeves hissed into Professor McGonagall's ear. She froze and her face blanched. Finally she muttered nervously, "Go away, Peeves!" Peeves cackled and zipped out of sight.

Professor McGonagall stood rooted to the spot. Peeves was on to her. Dumbledore had to be suspicious, too. She didn't know what to do. All she knew was that she _didn't_ want to hurt Albus.

"Minerva?" Dumbledore asked when she didn't move. He inched closer to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"I- I, um... I- " Professor McGonagall stammered, trying to figure out what to say.

"What is it, dear?" Albus asked, wondering what was the matter.

Professor McGonagall's conscience was resting heavily on top of her, and she feared it would crush her if she did the wrong thing. Her nerves were causing her stomach to twist into double and triple knots. She realized that she already did something wrong to _start_, and letting the entire school know what she did would just make things worse. Finally, she regained her voice.

"I... I-I'm... sick!" Minerva lied and ran down the hallway. Professor Dumbledore chased after her. She scurried into a girls' lavatory, thinking that Albus would not follow her inside. She leaned over a sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror.

_How could I do this to Albus?_ she wondered, feeling ashamed. _I never wanted to cause him pain. I love him too much to do that. Oh, what have I done?_ She sighed heavily and closed her eyes, not wanting to look at herself. She remained standing there, attempting to figure out what to do. She wasn't sure how many times her stomach could knot itself, but it had already exceeded her expectations. She bit her lip nervously and sighed again.

Meanwhile, Professor Dumbledore was pacing outside the bathroom door. Something was wrong with Minerva, and he wasn't quite sure what it was. Perhaps she really _was_ ill. _But then why is she acting so nervously?_ he thought, confused by her actions. After several minutes, Professor McGonagall still didn't come out. He began to get a little worried, so he knocked on the door.

"Professor McGonagall!" he called. Minerva let out an uncharacteristic squeak and didn't answer. She wasn't prepared yet. The knots were tying themselves even more tightly. She clutched her stomach and scurried into a stall, thinking maybe she really would be sick.

"Professor McGonagall!" Albus called again. When she didn't respond a second time, he barged right into the girls' bathroom, surprising the passersby even more so than he already did before. "Minerva, please come out of there," he said when he found her hiding place. When Minerva refused to come out, he asked, "What _is_ the matter, dear?"

Finally, Professor McGonagall exited the stall. She was staring at the ground, still embracing her nervous stomach, and there were silent tears rolling down her face. Albus came over to her and pulled her into a hug. "My dear, are you okay?"

Professor McGonagall shook her head.

"Should I take you to see Poppy?" he asked. Minerva shook her head again.

"I'm sorry, Albus!" Minerva cried, finally ready to admit to what she had done. She sobbed into his shoulder, only then realizing how emotional she was being.

"For what, Minerva?" Albus questioned. He placed two fingers under her chin and made her look up at him. Professor McGonagall quickly tried to regain her composure, but she did a poor job of that.

"I did it! And I've gone too far! I did it, Albus! _I'm guilty as charged!_" she confessed hysterically.

Albus eyed her carefully. "You mean - you're the one who turned my hair blue? But - why, Minerva?"

"Because I was mad at you for telling Peeves that you gave me a detention yesterday! So I turned your hair blue and transfigured your glasses and gave you Jelly-Legs and splashed water on your face and then Obliviated you, but I didn't turn your hair back because I thought it'd be funny!" Minerva explained in one breath. The she rambled on: "So this morning when you came to me, I tried to deny that I knew anything so you could be embarrassed in front of the whole schoole like I was, but then when we were heading to breakfast, those kids laughed at you, and you looked hurt, and my conscience was killing me because I didn't want to hurt you because I love you too much and- " She stopped abruptly, realizing she had said too much.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, fearing he'd be angry or disgusted at her, not just for her actions, but because of her words. New tears were streaming down her face, for she was afraid she had destroyed their entire friendship in one go.

"Y- you... love me, Minerva?" Dumbledore murmured in disbelief. "You _really_ love me?" His blue eyes were glistening with hope.

"I'm sorry," Minerva repeated quietly.

"Don't be," Albus said. He brought his lips to hers and kissed them lightly. When he pulled back, Minerva was speechless.

"Al- Albus?" she squeaked nervously. "Do you- do you mean y-you... love me, too?"

Albus responded with another kiss. "Yes, my dear. I've loved your for so long, Minerva." They kissed again. When the finally broke apart, both were in desperate need of air.

"I love you, Albus," Minerva whispered.

"I love you, too, Minerva McGonagall," he replied. "Now will you please change back my hair?"

* * *

Well, that's it. I hope it wasn't too bad.

- Erin -


End file.
